High Prevalence of Dysgraphia in Elementary Through High School Students With ADHD and Autism.

OBJECTIVE: Prevalence of dysgraphia by age across all grade levels was determined in students with ADHD or autism.

METHOD: Referred children with normal intelligence and ADHD-Combined, ADHD-Inattentive, or autism ( N = 1,034) were administered the Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC).

RESULTS: VMI and WISC Coding scores were significantly lower than IQ and the normal mean of 100 for all diagnoses. More than half (59%) had dysgraphia, and 92% had a weakness in graphomotor ability relative to other abilities. Dysgraphia prevalence did not differ between diagnostic or age groups (6-7 years, 56%; 8-10 years, 60%; and 11-16 years, 61%).

CONCLUSION: Dysgraphia is common at all ages in children and adolescents with ADHD and autism. Accommodations and strategies for addressing this problem are discussed.